Gaming – WebProNewshttp://www.webpronews.com
Breaking News in Tech, Search, Social, & BusinessThu, 08 Dec 2016 17:45:16 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.6.1How To Build Your YouTube Audience, From A Gamers Perspectivehttp://www.webpronews.com/build-youtube-audience-gamers-2016-06/
Tue, 07 Jun 2016 20:56:35 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=459304YouTube is arguably the most disruptive marketing platform of this decade. Yes, it's been around since 2005, but only in the last few years is it starting to impact Madison Avenue marketing campaigns. Companies are using YouTube to put their ... Read More

If you are the marketing director of a Fortune 2000 company or are an entrepreneur starting a small business you should dive into YouTube and video in general and learn how it can be an effective marketing tool for you or your brand.

Recently, some video gamers on the YouTube platform and part of the Youtube Creator Academy made a short video offering some advice on how to build a unique audience. This is from gamers perspective, but I think you will find the tips useful no matter what industry you are in.

"I built a community by being a really family friendly channel," said Zach Letter of Aviator Gaming. "I do mostly story based content in Minecraft. I like to consider my channel the soap opera of the Minecraft world so that kids come to watch an in-depth story that has some drama, has some romance and has that tension they deal with everyday at school or in their real life. I think that is how I built such a tight
-nit community that loves my scripting, loves my role play but also loves me."

Letter commented, "When I try to engage my audience I use a lot of the YouTube tools but I also use parts of my voice. I will try to engage them for likes and comments, just to see where they're at in a certain series." For instance Letter might ask, "What do you thinks going to happen next in the plot?" "That actually inspires me to write certain things in the script. If a lot of people want this certain thing to happen I might go back in and change the script and change up the episode. I think it's alway smart to engage comments especially when it's related to your content because it allows you to tailor content that your viewers actually want to see."

"Whether it's submissions on social media or in the comments sections they let me know that, hey, we really want to play this game, or hey, try out this game that's coming out," commented Garrett Sutton of JoblessGarrett. "Staying up on the trends and hype trains in regards to new releases of games really helps a child's world as well."

"For us it's hard, because our main body of the episodes are very heavily scripted, but we use the intro paragraphs, we use the end cards as ways to actually communicate with the fans." Matthew Patrick of The Game Theorists said. "People have been asking for us to cover films, TV and anime for a really long time, so Film Theory, the Channel, made a lot of sense. Hey, it would be really cool to see you play games and see what you do in real life, so the live stream happened."

Patrick added, "First off the way they behave on camera will really dictate the way their fans behave. If you are responding to haters all the time those are going to tend to filter up in the comments, whereas if you are responding to that thoughtful comment, it shows that you as a creator is active in that community and is someone who is listening and is excited to engage."

]]>If This Works For Twitter, Businesses Stand To Benefithttp://www.webpronews.com/twitter-explains-why-moments-will-help-it-grow-2015-10/
Wed, 28 Oct 2015 14:16:38 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=445627It looks like Twitter is betting big on its recently launched Moments feature to help it grow its user base, which continues to grow at the rate of a snail's pace. Whether or not marketers are able to benefit directly ... Read More

]]>It looks like Twitter is betting big on its recently launched Moments feature to help it grow its user base, which continues to grow at the rate of a snail's pace. Whether or not marketers are able to benefit directly from the feature, everyone stands to gain something out of Twitter increasing its user base.

The company is getting a lot of attention for running a television ad during the World Series. It's not the first time Twitter has advertised on TV (that was in 2013 during a NASCAR race), but it's not something the company has been doing regularly.

Under constant pressure from shareholders and industry analysts (not to mention the ouster of CEO Dick Costolo) to pick up the pace on growth, Twitter is trying its damnedest to launch more products and features and make it easier for the general public to understand what they're missing out on by not using Twitter.

The new ad focuses specifically on Moments, as did a conference call held to discuss Twitter's Q3 earnings release on Tuesday to a great extent.

Just What Are Twitter Moments?

Twitter unveiled Moments earlier this month. Basically, moments are curated stories made up of tweets, images, vines, videos, and GIFs. They are curated by Twitter and by select partners, which include Bleacher Report, Buzzfeed, Entertainment Weekly, Fox News, Getty Images, Mashable, MLB, NASA, New York Times, Vogue and the Washington Post. The number of curators will expand over time.

Twitter users can access and follow specific stories from the new Moments tab, which features a lightning bolt icon. New stories appear throughout the day and are continuously updated and organized by topics like entertainment, sports, etc.

For now, the feature is available to U.S. users on Android, iOS, and the web. Users outside of the country can view moments if someone shared one with them.

Promoted Moments

It didn't take long for Twitter to turn Moments into a potential ad product. This was no doubt the plan from the beginning, but it took the company a couple of weeks to mention that part.

Promoted Moments made their debut this past weekend. This is a new native ad format that it is now testing with certain partners.

“We’re seeing how powerful this experience can be for diving into meaningful narratives — and since Twitter’s inception, brands have told some of the very best stories on the platform,” said Twitter brand strategy manager Bobby Grasberger. “Promoted Moments, like all of our ad products, will look and feel just like all other Moments — except they’ll be authored by a brand and be featured in the Moments guide for 24 hours, with a Promoted badge.”

The first one came from MGM, Warner Bros, and New Line Cinema for the movie Creed. The ad debuted on Twitter on Sunday.

Why Twitter Thinks Moments Will Work

As mentioned, this is not a feature that Twitter is taking lightly. A great deal of the earnings call dealt with Moments, which CEO Jack Dorsey referred to as "the best of what's happening on Twitter in an instant" and the "simplest way to see what's happening in the world, all organized by topic."

He noted that it's still early and the company is collecting feedback on the feature, but that they've already seen how it has improved Twitter. He went on to talk about the Moment for the Toronto Blue Jays series clinching win over the Texas Rangers during the playoffs, which he said showed the best places, commentary, and passion from fans after a go-ahead home run.

Dorsey also talked about The Washington Post Paris Fashion Week Moment, which he said put people front row for designs fro a premiere fashion event as well as Mashable's Moment of the South Carolina floods, which he said "brought home in a very visceral way the extent of flood damage" and how residents recover.

He also noted how Moments are not only on Twitter in the Moments tab, but that they're embedded all over the web, and that's always been a key component of visibility for Twitter content.

Even before Twitter let users embed tweets, the media would display images of Tweets, whether on television or in web articles.

Dorsey said Twitter's focus with Moments is currently to make them easier to discover and get people into them right when they open Twitter. Hence the TV ad.

Rolling the feature out beyond the U.S. is also a priority.

"Moments is just the start of bolder simplification efforts you will see on Twitter," Dorsey said during the call. "I’ve challenged our teams to look beyond assumptions about what makes Twitter the best play to share what's happening. I'm confident our ideals will result in the service that’s far easier to understand and much more powerful."

COO Adam Bain said that in Q4, Twitter will be opening up a new video focused inventory with the launch of Promoted Moments.

"It’s designed to be a great platform for marketers to tell their stories, especially video centric narratives," he said, noting that last weekend's Creed campaign generated awareness and anticipation of the film by curating videos and tweets.

The goal for Promoted Moments, he said, is to learn alongside marketers. According to Bain, demand for the format is strong and the company will be "deliberate" in its approach with a limited series for "quality consumer experience above all else."

During the testing phase, consumers will not see Promoted Moments every day.

Twitter CFO Anthony Noto noted that the company is excited about the potential of Moments as "a fully integrated launch across all cross-functions". This, he said, is something the company has been saying it needs to do in order to "capture the next cohort of users to use Twitter."

"Specifically we want to not just with engineering product and design but also an integrated team across marketing, coms, content and media," he said. "If you've been online or on mobile, you'll see your digital video ads, you will see our paid search ads, you will see our display ads and more to come on the marketing and content and media front. So we’re excited about all of those things and opportunity Moments brings to simplify our product and make it much easier to communicate our marketing."

Noto said Twitter has "opportunities to optimize across marketing channels and content quality and our choice and selection on content."

"The one other thing I'd just point out from a metric standpoint and I want to make sure investors really appreciate this point is Moments by itself is simplifying our product, but there are many features within Moments that leverage the strength of Twitter, the social aspects of Twitter and the strength of our open communication network," Noto continued. "So the retweet, the share, and the favorite, you can retweet, you can share, and you favorite within Moments and what that does is it provides content back to all your followers in their home timeline enhancing their experience. So Moments is about driving adoption without a doubt and engagement, but it’s also about reinforcing the quality and strength of every node in our network and so we’re also focused on those things."

Dorsey chimed in again, "Moments represents a real fundamental shift in our thinking and the reason why is a lot of Twitter is organized by a reverse chronological timeline. We make people do a bunch of work to find the right accounts to follow and then they actually see the world through those accounts. What Moments does is you can open it up, you can actually see everything that’s happened in the world, that’s most meaningful, it's organized by topics, so you see topics first. You tap in to each one of those Moments and you can actually see really unique insight and commentary on the particular event that you’re interested in."

He later referred to Moments as "one of those bold new experiences that I think does question a bunch of our fundamentals around making Twitter a whole lot easier to understand."

As far as Moments rolling out to the rest of the world, Dorsey said the company has an international rollout strategy for the product, but that it doesn't want to pre-announce any markets. He said they just want to get it to everyone in the world as quickly as they can.

"What I will tell you is that we want to build in the learnings from our launch in the U.S. and do it in an integrated way, the way we have in the U.S. in each one of those markets, so more to come," he said.

According to Noto, Moments is only the first of other product changes on the horizon that are fundamental to attracting more users and simplifying Twitter.

Twitter is claiming 307 million monthly active users in Q3. That's only a gain of 3 million from Q2.

If Twitter can kickstart growth, it means more eyeballs for businesses on Twitter whether than means more followers or more visibility for promoted tweets, not to mention increased potential for any ecommerce endeavors - another area where Twitter is finally growing.

Do you believe Twitter can convince more people to start using its services with Moments and other product launches? Do you think businesses will benefit from a growing user base? Discuss.

]]>Lego Jurassic World, Avengers Games Coming in 2015http://www.webpronews.com/lego-jurassic-world-avengers-games-coming-in-2015-2015-01/
Thu, 29 Jan 2015 20:26:25 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=415437If you've ever wanted to relive the magic of the Jurassic Park films (mostly the first one) in Lego form, well, you're in luck. Warner Bros, LEGO, and TT Games have just announced the next slate of Lego video games ... Read More

]]>If you've ever wanted to relive the magic of the Jurassic Park films (mostly the first one) in Lego form, well, you're in luck.

Warner Bros, LEGO, and TT Games have just announced the next slate of Lego video games and it includes LEGO Jurassic World and LEGO Marvel's Avengers. The former is due out in June and the latter in the fall of 2015. Both will be available on all major consoles, handhelds, and PC.

LEGO: Jurassic World will include storylines from Jurassic Park, The Lost World: Jurassic Park and Jurassic Park III, as well as the upcoming Jurassic World.

“This year will be the biggest yet for LEGO videogames with these incredible titles and several firsts for the series,” said Tom Stone, Managing Director, TT Games. “TT Games are crafting humorous LEGO adventures, based on new stories and characters across some of the most well-known and iconic worlds.”

Beyond those two major titles, LEGO is also putting out LEGO Ninjago: Shadow of Ronin on handhelds, The LEGO Movie Videogame on iOS, and mobile game LEGO Batman: Beyond Gotham

“The LEGO videogame franchise remains a cornerstone of our business, consistently delivering fun, engaging gameplay and remarkable humor both kids and adults love,” said David Haddad, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. “We look forward to expanding the successful series with this very exciting line-up of new LEGO experiences for players of all ages to enjoy on console, handheld and mobile gaming devices.”

The LEGO game franchise is one of the biggest in history, with over 100 million units sold.

]]>Dying Light System Requirements, Season Pass Revealedhttp://www.webpronews.com/dying-light-system-requirements-season-pass-revealed-2014-12/
Sun, 07 Dec 2014 00:29:44 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=409062Dying Light will continue the time honored zombie game tradition in 2015. Unlike other zombie games, however, Dying Light will mix some first-person parkour platforming into the mix. The game will hit PS4, Xbox One and PC, but how powerful ... Read More

]]>Dying Light will continue the time honored zombie game tradition in 2015. Unlike other zombie games, however, Dying Light will mix some first-person parkour platforming into the mix. The game will hit PS4, Xbox One and PC, but how powerful of a PC will you need to play it.

Techland revealed the PC system requirements for Dying Light this past week. Fortunately, the requirements aren't that taxing especially when compared to other cross platform games released this year. Without further ado, here's the system requirements:

If you meet the recommended requirements, you're going to have a pretty good looking game. If you only meet the minimum requirements, you're still going to have a great time. I played games with a GTX 560 for a few years, and games looked great even on medium settings. If you must have the ultimate in visual fidelity, you might want to check out the PS4 or Xbox One versions if the PC requirements are too steep for you.

As for the Season Pass, Dying Light will charge the now standard $20 for a number of DLC packs that are to be offered throughout the life of the game. The first DLC pack - Cuisine and Cargo - will challenge players to sneak through buildings that were sealed off at the start of the zombie apocalypse. The second DLC pack - the Ultimate Survivor Bundle - will give players three new outfits and four weapon blueprints. The final DLC pack - the Bozak Horde - will introduce an area where players can take down hordes of zombies by themselves or with a friend.

To top it all off, Techland shared a new trailer for Dying Light at Friday night's Game Awards:

]]>Xbox One: Is It Time To Get One?http://www.webpronews.com/xbox-one-is-it-time-to-get-one-2014-12/
Fri, 05 Dec 2014 20:13:32 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=408865The Xbox One is a little over a year old this month. In that year, Microsoft's next-gen console has gone through more changes than most consoles do in their lifetime. Does that mean the console is now worth owning? Like ... Read More

]]>The Xbox One is a little over a year old this month. In that year, Microsoft's next-gen console has gone through more changes than most consoles do in their lifetime. Does that mean the console is now worth owning?

Like any new console, the Xbox One launched without any real must own games. It had titles like Dead Rising 3 and Ryse, but both of those titles are now on the PC. It also suffered from a perception that it was weaker than the PS4 when multiplatform games underperformed on the Xbox One compared to its rival.

In the months since launch, those early perceptions are nearly gone. It's objectively true that the PS4 is a more powerful console, but developers are now starting to aim for parity between the Xbox One and PS4 versions of their games. In other words, multiplatform games like Far Cry 4 and Alien Isolation are going to run just as well on the Xbox One as they do on the PS4. As for exclusive titles, the Xbox One has the PS4 beat this year with big titles like Sunset Overdrive and Halo: The Master Chief Collection.

Besides games, Microsoft has made a number of other wise decisions regarding the Xbox One. Earlier this year, the company decided to make the Kinect optional and lowered the price of the Kinect-less console SKU by $100. At $399, the Xbox One was now the same price as the PS4 and was far more tempting to gamers looking to upgrade. More recently, Microsoft lowered the price of the Xbox One to $349 for the holidays and even packed in free copies of Assassin's Creed Unity or Sunset Overdrive to undercut Sony's PS4. It's seems to have worked as Black Friday sales results indicate the Xbox One was the best selling console last weekend.

As for general system software, Microsoft has released a number of firmware updates over the last year. At launch, the Xbox One lacked many features that many assume should just ship with consoles, like a way to manage memory. Microsoft has listened to this feedback and released numerous patches that have addressed most of the complaints. There's still work to be done, but Microsoft has made it known that it's not going to slow down its release of new firmware updates.

Compared to this time last year, the Xbox One is in a much stronger position. The same could be said of most consoles after their first year, but the difference is far more pronounced with the Xbox One. In comparison, the PS4 is still somewhat of a disappointment as Sony has relied on remasters of PS3 games and third-party titles to sell PS4s for most of 2013. The console won't be getting its first big exclusive until next March with Bloodborne.

In short, the Xbox One is the best value in next-gen gaming this holiday season. It always comes down to personal preference, but Microsoft has the exclusives and price advantage that should appeal to gamers looking for a next-gen fix.

]]>Limited Edition PS4 Celebrates 20 Years Of PlayStationhttp://www.webpronews.com/limited-edition-ps4-celebrates-20-years-of-playstation-2014-12/
Thu, 04 Dec 2014 00:27:37 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=408402Can you believe that the PlayStation brand is 20 years old? What started out as Sony's attack on Nintendo for reneging on an agreement to co-produce a console has now become a household name in gaming. To celebrate its 20 ... Read More

]]>Can you believe that the PlayStation brand is 20 years old? What started out as Sony's attack on Nintendo for reneging on an agreement to co-produce a console has now become a household name in gaming. To celebrate its 20 years in the business, Sony is making a limited edition PS4.

Sony announced today that it will be making a limited edition PS4 that's colored gray to mimic the color scheme of the original PlayStation. There will only be 12,300 of the consoles manufactured worldwide so you can imagine that people will be paying top dollar to get their hands on one of these limited edition machines.

Here's Sony's Sid Shuman talking about the limited edition PS4:

Hardware isn't the only thing Sony is using to celebrate 20 years of PlayStation. Sony's Japanese branch also created this great look at a bunch of franchises that grew up on PlayStation, including Final Fantasy, Tekken, Ridge Racer and more.

PlayStation fans will be able to check out the limited edition PS4 at this weekend's PlayStation Experience in Las Vegas. At the same event, fans will get the first details regarding how they can get their hands on the new console.

]]>Tetris, the Movie, Is a Thing That's Happeninghttp://www.webpronews.com/tetris-the-movie-is-a-thing-thats-happening-2014-09/
http://www.webpronews.com/tetris-the-movie-is-a-thing-thats-happening-2014-09/#commentsTue, 30 Sep 2014 14:54:55 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=393588Film adaptations of video games have a varying track record of success – both in terms of gross revenue and in terms of quality. But the good thing about most video game movies is that there's already a built-in audience. ... Read More

]]>Film adaptations of video games have a varying track record of success – both in terms of gross revenue and in terms of quality. But the good thing about most video game movies is that there's already a built-in audience.

That's especially true for Tetris, the classic puzzle game which, according to the Wall Street Journal, is coming to a theater near you.

From Larry Kasanoff, the guy who brought you Mortal Kombat, and his company Threshold Entertainment, comes the story of squares, L-shapes, T-shapes, and I-shapes – well, maybe some of the latter. It's always so hard to find one when you really need one.

Kasanoff is calling it an "epic sci-fi movie" and says that it won't just be a bunch of talking blocks.

“It’s a very big, epic sci-fi movie,” he told the WSJ. “This isn’t a movie with a bunch of lines running around the page. We’re not giving feet to the geometric shapes.”

Maybe something like this?

In fact, scouring YouTube will net you plenty of fan-made trailers, like the one above, for possible Tetris-themed films. There's clearly a market for this.

Anyway, the film is a long way from your local theater. Apparently there is a story already conceived, but no actors or director attached.

]]>http://www.webpronews.com/tetris-the-movie-is-a-thing-thats-happening-2014-09/feed/3FIFA 15 Is Out Today in the U.S.http://www.webpronews.com/fifa-15-is-out-today-in-the-u-s-2014-09/
Tue, 23 Sep 2014 13:56:36 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=391688After a long summer with few big game releases, the fall video game season is now here. As one of the largest publishers in the industry, EA is getting a head start with the release of its big sports titles. ... Read More

]]>After a long summer with few big game releases, the fall video game season is now here. As one of the largest publishers in the industry, EA is getting a head start with the release of its big sports titles. Madden NFL 15 made its debut just over one month ago and EA Sports NHL 15 hit stores two weeks ago.

This week the biggest sports video game franchise of them all is being released. FIFA 15 is out today in North America. Europeans can get their hands on the title starting Thursday (Friday for the UK).

The game is being released on all major platforms, including PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, and PC. PC gamers will be required to access FIFA 15 through EA's Origin client. Xbox One gamers who already bought into EA's new EA Access subscription service have had access to the game since last Thursday.

According to EA over 5.5 million people have already played the FIFA 15 demo since it was released two weeks ago.

As with other EA sports games, FIFA 15 doesn't feature huge technical leaps over last year's version. Instead, smaller features have been tweaked or improved along with the game's graphics and animations. Improvements to player face graphics in particular have been a focus of this year's FIFA.

EA has also added more than 600 new player reaction animations to the game. In-game players now have "emotional" feelings (both good and bad) toward other players, which is supposed to enable more realistic in-game reactions.

“We believe we have built a game in FIFA 15 that delivers the most immersive and responsive gameplay experience ever in the FIFA franchise, and we can’t wait for the millions of fans to start their season and experience all of the innovations,” said David Rutter, general manager of EA Sports FIFA.

Another focus of this year's FIFA improvements has been goalkeepers. FIFA 15 keepers have new animations and improved artificial intelligence, allowing them to react to shots in a more realistic manner.

]]>Final Fantasy XV Gameplay Previewed at TGShttp://www.webpronews.com/final-fantasy-xv-gameplay-previewed-at-tgs-2014-09/
http://www.webpronews.com/final-fantasy-xv-gameplay-previewed-at-tgs-2014-09/#commentsThu, 18 Sep 2014 14:49:51 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=390602Fans of the single-player Final Fantasy games have been waiting since 2010 for a new numbered title in the venerable series. In fact, given the mixed fan reaction to Final Fantasy XIII, some fans have been waiting even longer for ... Read More

]]>Fans of the single-player Final Fantasy games have been waiting since 2010 for a new numbered title in the venerable series. In fact, given the mixed fan reaction to Final Fantasy XIII, some fans have been waiting even longer for what they would consider a new Final Fantasy.

At this week's Tokyo Game Show, Square Enix provided the most in-depth look yet at the upcoming Final Fantasy XV. The publisher released a two-and-a-half minute trailer for the game, which includes plenty of gameplay.

Final Fantasy XV was first announced at the 2006 E3 conference as Final Fantasy Versus XIII. After years of silence the game finally reemerged at Sony's memorable 2013 E3 press conference as the next numbered title in the Final Fantasy series.

Due to the success of Bravely Default, a game inspired by older turn-based Final Fantasy titles, Square Enix has announced it will be taking a long look at the direction of the Final Fantasy series going forward. Final Fantasy XV, however, is still part of the publisher's recent trend of making Final Fantasy more action-oriented.

The gameplay seen in the preview features a very minimal user interface comprised of only life bars and floating damage indicators. This could mean that the interface was pasted-on to make the preview seem more like real gameplay, or it could hint that Final Fantasy XV is closer to a character action game than to a turn-based RPG. Fans likely won't know more on this topic for quite some time - Square Enix hasn't put out any details to accompany the trailer.

What is clear is that Final Fantasy XV is set to be the best-looking Final Fantasy game yet. For over two years now Square Enix has been showing off a beautiful tech demo for its new Luminous Studio game engine. The Final Fantasy XV seen in the new preview looks every bit as good as that "Agni's Philosophy" demo and, even with an inevitable downgrade for consoles, should be impressive when running on a PlayStation 4 or Xbox One.

]]>http://www.webpronews.com/final-fantasy-xv-gameplay-previewed-at-tgs-2014-09/feed/2Xbox 360 Bundles Released For $249 Through Walmarthttp://www.webpronews.com/xbox-360-bundles-released-for-249-2014-09/
http://www.webpronews.com/xbox-360-bundles-released-for-249-2014-09/#commentsWed, 17 Sep 2014 01:13:06 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=390110Even though it has released the Xbox One, Microsoft is not letting the Xbox 360 fade into oblivion this holiday season. Three new Xbox 360 bundles have been announced via the official Xbox blog, Major Nelson. First is an Xbox ... Read More

]]>Even though it has released the Xbox One, Microsoft is not letting the Xbox 360 fade into oblivion this holiday season. Three new Xbox 360 bundles have been announced via the official Xbox blog, Major Nelson.

First is an Xbox 360 with Call of Duty: Ghosts and Call of Duty: Black Ops II, for $249.

Second is the same as the first, but with a blue Xbox.

The third comes with a Kinect with the games Kinect Adventures, Kinect Sports, and Forza Horizon, also for $249.

It's annoying that some of the bundles are associated with specific retailers, but it's smart to keep nurturing the Xbox 360. Microsoft certainly hopes these owners will transfer over to the Xbox One in the future.

The best part is, you don't have to wait for the holiday season to purchase it. Microsoft told Polygon that the first and the third bundle have been released today, while the special blue bundle goes on sale October 7th. According to MVC, you can only go to Walmart to buy it.

Why is Microsoft nurturing the Xbox 360, when the argument could be made that the console is out of date with the release of the Xbox One? "Xbox 360 continues to be an important piece of the Xbox portfolio and still offers amazing games and entertainment experiences to fans," an Xbox spokesperson told CNET, "We're pleased to bring more offerings and price points for fans this holiday."

Last year, the Xbox 360 bundles ran $300 to $400. One deal featured a Kinect with Kinect Adventures and Kinect Sports, while the $400 version added Forza Horizon. Also, Microsoft waited last year to release these bundles on October 13th.

Comparatively, consumers are getting a much better deal this year even earlier.

]]>http://www.webpronews.com/xbox-360-bundles-released-for-249-2014-09/feed/2Minecraft Downloads to Continue on PC, PlayStationhttp://www.webpronews.com/minecraft-downloads-to-continue-on-pc-playstation-2014-09/
Tue, 16 Sep 2014 13:39:08 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=389978Yesterday Microsoft officially announced that it is acquiring Mojang, the development studio behind the game Minecraft. Microsoft will reportedly pay $2.5 billion for the Swedish game studio. Minecraft creator Markus "Notch" Persson also announced that he will be leaving Mojang ... Read More

]]>Yesterday Microsoft officially announced that it is acquiring Mojang, the development studio behind the game Minecraft. Microsoft will reportedly pay $2.5 billion for the Swedish game studio. Minecraft creator Markus "Notch" Persson also announced that he will be leaving Mojang and will not go on to work for Microsoft.

Minecraft is sandbox style game that features simplistic graphics and gameplay. Players are free to play together as they please, often building using individual cubes; crafting weaponry and survival gear; and battling fantasy creatures. The game has become incredibly popular with young people and has consistently been a top-selling game across platforms including PC, consoles, and mobile devices.

Though Microsoft regularly purchases smaller companies, this particular acquisition has significance for the current console war between Microsoft and Sony. Sales of Microsoft's Xbox One console are now lagging behind those of Sony's PlayStation 4, leading Microsoft to un-bundle its Kinect peripheral to lower the price its new console. Microsoft is also scrambling to provide the Xbox One with exclusive software, and recently announced a deal with publisher Square Enix to make the next Tomb Raider game exclusive for a time on the One. Seen in this context, it is easy to see how the Minecraft acquisition could be worrisome for PlayStation, PC, or even iOS gamers.

Phil Spencer, head of Microsoft's Xbox division, tried to soothe gamers' fears this week, stating that Microsoft will "continue to make Minecraft available across platforms - including iOS, Android, and PlayStation, in addition to Xbox and PC." From the official announcement:

At Microsoft, we believe in the power of content to unite people. Minecraft adds diversity to our game portfolio and helps us reach new gamers across multiple platforms. Gaming is the top activity across devices and we see great potential to continue to grow the Minecraft community and nurture the franchise. That is why we plan to continue to make Minecraft available across platforms – including iOS, Android and PlayStation, in addition to Xbox and PC.

Mojang made a similar statement, saying that "there's no reason for the development, sales, and support of the PC/Mac, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS3, PS4, Vita, iOS, and Android versions of Minecraft to stop."

While this may be true, carefully selected language such as "continue to make Minecraft available" and "there's no reason" do leave the door open for Microsoft to stop supporting or marketing the game on platforms other than its own. Whether Microsoft will choose to do that is still unclear, but the company is now in charge of the greater Minecraft community and one of the biggest video games of all time.

]]>Warner Bros. has officially announced a release date for Mortal Kombat X. The game will be released worldwide on April 14, 2015 for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, and PC.

Additionally, Warner Bros. announced that classic four-armed Mortal Kombat character Goro will be a part of Mortal Kombat X. However, the publisher is holding Goro back as a retail pre-order exclusive character. This means the character will initially be available only for those players who pre-order the game.

The new announcement also hinted at how the online component of Mortal Kombat X will function. Warner Bros. stated that the game will offer "a new fully-connected experience that launches players into a persistent online contest where every fight matters in a global battle for supremacy."

NeatherRealm Studios, the developer of Mortal Kombat X, first showed off the game at this year's E3. The early preview showed that Mortal Kombat X will have a look and fighting style similar to last year's Injustice: Gods Among Us, a DC Comics-branded fighting game that was also developed by NeatherRealm.

At this year's Gamescom conference NeatherRealm released further details about what players can expect in Mortal Kombat X.

The game will, of course, feature classic Mortal Kombat characters such as Scorpion, Raiden, Kano, and others. In addition, new characters coming to Mortal Kombat X include Cassie Cage (daughter of Sonya Blade and Johnny Cage), Kotal Kahn, Ferra-Torr, and D'Vorah.

Each of the game's fighters will have three different fighting style variations for players to chose from. These variations include different special moves and abilities.

Mortal Combat X's story will take place 25 years after the events seen in 2011's Mortal Kombat reboot.

“Mortal Kombat has always been about over-the-top, visceral fighting and with Mortal Kombat X we wanted to utilize the power of new-gen consoles to give players our most intense game yet,” said Ed Boon, creative director for NetherRealm. “The team has worked hard to make sure Mortal Kombat X delivers everything fans expect along with new characters, new game modes, and an all new graphics engine.”

]]>Fox News Defends the Homeland, Copies Bioshock Infinite Logohttp://www.webpronews.com/fox-news-defends-the-homeland-copies-bioshock-infinite-logo-2014-07/
Thu, 03 Jul 2014 15:03:46 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=371059Bioshock Infinite, the third installment of the Bioshock series, was released to nearly universal acclaim in 2013. The game, widely regarded as a return to glory for the series after a bit of a stumble on Bioshock 2, has entered ... Read More

]]>Bioshock Infinite, the third installment of the Bioshock series, was released to nearly universal acclaim in 2013. The game, widely regarded as a return to glory for the series after a bit of a stumble on Bioshock 2, has entered the pop culture lexicon with its striking visual design and compelling storyline.

Much of the action in Bioshock Infinite takes place in Columbia, a pseudo-Christian "utopian" society where racism (the white supremacy type) and classism is pretty much institutionalized. The city, floating in the sky, was built on a platform of American exceptionalism by a religious zealot who is worshipped as a prophet. The city is littered with over-the-top American iconography – even to the point of having the Founding Fathers held up as religious figures.

]]>Angry Birds Transformers Mash-up Is a Real Thing That's Happeninghttp://www.webpronews.com/angry-birds-transformers-mash-up-is-a-real-thing-thats-happening-2014-06/
Mon, 16 Jun 2014 13:58:37 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=366621Because the world needed the word 'Deceptihog', Rovio and Hasbro have teamed up once again to bring you a new Angry Birds mashup that will spawn a new game, a new product line, and more branded toys. This time, it's ... Read More

]]>Because the world needed the word 'Deceptihog', Rovio and Hasbro have teamed up once again to bring you a new Angry Birds mashup that will spawn a new game, a new product line, and more branded toys.

This time, it's the Transformers.

“We’re really excited to combine the iconic Transformers universe with the quirky world of Angry Birds” said Blanca Juti, Chief Marketing Officer of Rovio. “This mash-up is going to appeal to those who grew up with the brand in the 80s, as well as fans of the brand today. People are going to love it!”

“Angry Birds Transformers provides fans worldwide with a fun, new story and characters, and innovative ways, like our TELEPODS platform, for consumers to engage with the brand” said John Frascotti, Chief Marketing Officer at Hasbro. “We collaborated with Rovio to create opportunities for kids and families to experience Autobirds and Deceptihogs across multiple formats and entertainment platforms, for a completely immersive branded experience.”

No word yet on exactly when the new Angry Birds Transformer mobile app will launch, but there's a teaser site you can go check out right now. Other than a big graphic, all you'll find is the tagline Birds disguised as robots in disguise.

]]>'Terminator 2' Truck Chase Gets a Shot for Shot GTA Remakehttp://www.webpronews.com/terminator-2-truck-chase-gets-a-shot-for-shot-gta-remake-2014-06/
Thu, 05 Jun 2014 14:22:18 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=364487You know how there are some things that just make you happy? No, not the obvious things like beer, money, and grilled meat. I mean those times when you're just delighted by something, inexplicably? This is one of those times. ... Read More

]]>You know how there are some things that just make you happy? No, not the obvious things like beer, money, and grilled meat. I mean those times when you're just delighted by something, inexplicably?

This is one of those times.

I guess it's wrong to call my delight totally inexplicable. I think that it comes down to knowing that people took the time to do this. Of all the things in the world they could have done, they decided to remake, in Grand Theft Auto 5, one of the most classic chase scenes from one of the best flicks in history.

"It mostly took a lot of time because I wanted to try to make it exact. Yes I may have missed some small scenes but damn we worked hard on this from the actual setting up, to the directing, to the editing so please give it a look," says creator John Chapman.

]]>Lance Armstrong Gets Perfect Card in Cards Against Humanity. You Know the One.http://www.webpronews.com/lance-armstrong-gets-perfect-card-in-cards-against-humanity-you-know-the-one-2014-05/
Mon, 19 May 2014 14:45:30 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=359265On October 2nd, 1996, professional cyclist Lance Armstrong was diagnosed with stage three testicular cancer. On October 3rd, he underwent an orchiectomy to remove his cancerous testicle. Armstrong's cancer had already spread to other parts of his body, and things ... Read More

]]>On October 2nd, 1996, professional cyclist Lance Armstrong was diagnosed with stage three testicular cancer. On October 3rd, he underwent an orchiectomy to remove his cancerous testicle. Armstrong's cancer had already spread to other parts of his body, and things looked grim. But as we all know, Lance Armstrong survived his battle with cancer, created a pretty dopey yellow bracelet, won a few gajillion Tour de Frances, and was eventually outed for his use of performance enhancing drugs.

Cards Against Humanity is an incredibly popular party game that has players match answer cards with question cards. Cards Against Humanity shares some gameplay aspects to another popular game, Apples to Apples, where a question card receives answer cards from all players, and the "reader" decides the best answer of the bunch. But the thing about CAH is that it's terrible, depraved, disgusting, and hilarious. It's self-described as "a game for horrible people," and as despicable and awkward–just like you and your friends.

On May 18th, 2014, Lance Armstrong and Cards Against Humanity matched up in an absolutely beautiful moment.

]]>Xbox One Price Slashed to $399 Without Kinecthttp://www.webpronews.com/xbox-one-price-slashed-to-399-without-kinect-2014-05/
Tue, 13 May 2014 17:59:02 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=358031In yet another huge Xbox announcement from Microsoft, the price of the Xbox One will soon be cut to just $399. This price brings Microsoft's new console down to the same price as Sony's PlayStation 4. The new $399 Xbox ... Read More

]]>In yet another huge Xbox announcement from Microsoft, the price of the Xbox One will soon be cut to just $399. This price brings Microsoft's new console down to the same price as Sony's PlayStation 4.

The new $399 Xbox One will be sold in all territories where the console is currently released starting on June 9 - the day before this year's E3 conference is scheduled to begin.

The new package will not include the Kinect, which had been bundled in with the console since its launch. The mandatory inclusion of the Kinect with every Xbox One had been a sticking point for many gamers who see the peripheral as a gimmick.

The price cut announcement was made by Microsoft's new head of Xbox, Phil Spencer.

"There's a lot about Kinect that I really love, but we've also heard from people that they just like to play games with a controller in their hand and they play multiplayer through Xbox Live," said Spencer. "What we wanted to do is for those people make sure that there's a version of Xbox that really meets the exact needs that they have."

Last November Xbox One sales got off to an impressive start with Microsoft selling 2 million of its new consoles in less than one month. Since that time sales of the Xbox One have been steadily falling behind the PlayStation 4, which has been consistently selling out across the world for months.

Sony took this early lead in the console generation largely due to mistakes Microsoft made promoting the Xbox One before its launch. At Microsoft's big Xbox One announcement one year ago, executives heavily touted the console's ability to display TV and revealed severe always-on DRM policies for the console's games.

Though Microsoft backed down from its DRM plans, the console was dealt another blow at last year's E3 when Sony announced the PlayStation 4's price would be $100 less than the price of the Xbox One. The pricing disparity contributed to calls for Microsoft to drop the Kinect sensor from the Xbox One package, as the peripheral was seen as a major factor in the console's higher price.

Back in February Microsoft announced a smaller Xbox One price cut for the U.K., dropping the price to just £400. A Titanfall bundle was also announced with no price increase, essentially giving a copy of the game away with every new Xbox One sold.

Today's announcement puts the Xbox One almost exactly where its critics said it should be last November. With a competitive price, no Kinect, and less emphasis on TV in Xbox One marketing, Microsoft's console is now poised to compete with the PlayStation 4 on almost every level except for the Xbox One's lower hardware specs.

With this price cut, Microsoft is demonstrating yet again that its original plans for the Xbox One were not what gamers wanted. The move is almost certainly related to slowing sales of the new console and is a sign that Titanfall was not the major Xbox One-selling title that Microsoft had hoped.

]]>Angry Birds Is Coming To The Classroomhttp://www.webpronews.com/angry-birds-is-coming-to-the-classroom-2014-05/
http://www.webpronews.com/angry-birds-is-coming-to-the-classroom-2014-05/#commentsTue, 06 May 2014 21:52:35 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=356360Angry Birds is a cultural phenomenon that has earned itself fans young and old thanks to its simple yet charming mobile games. Now the Finnish developer behind the series wants to do what any popular game franchise does once it ... Read More

]]>Angry Birds is a cultural phenomenon that has earned itself fans young and old thanks to its simple yet charming mobile games. Now the Finnish developer behind the series wants to do what any popular game franchise does once it builds up an audience - edutainment.

The Washington Post reports that Rovio is developing a new education system based around Angry Birds called Angry Birds Playground. The program is based upon the Finnish kindergarten curriculum that teaches children through free play and experimentation. Angry Birds Playground adds a bit more structure to the mix through the use of technology.

Here's how Rovio describes the program:

The subject matter and skills to be learned are presented in a playful and exciting way. Children will be encouraged to get actively involved in the learning process while having plenty of fun at the same time. The Angry Birds Playground enables kids to learn in a creative, multifaceted way - making the best of technology-enriched learning environments, as well as learning opportunities within and beyond the classroom. Children will have access to Angry Birds learning materials such as activity books, toys, physical games, educational posters, mobile math, reference books, a five string instrument, game cards and physical activity games on an interactive whiteboard.

At the moment, Rovio is training teachers in three Chinese cities how to use Angry Birds Playground, but it will undoubtedly expand sooner rather than later. After all, teachers are always looking for new ways to educate children. With Angry Birds on their side, children might stay engaged enough to actually learn something. There's also the matter of the Finnish kindergarten curriculum being one of the best in the world and you have a recipe for success.

This isn't the first time Rovio has used its Angry Birds characters to educate children. In 2012, Rovio partnered with NASA on a few levels in Angry Birds Space that saw the piggies stealing the Mars Rover Curiosity. As players completed levels to take the rover back, they would learn about Mars and NASA's mission on the red planet. Angry Birds Playground is decidedly more focused on educating children, but it's already been proven that Rovio knows how to craft fun experiences that can also be educational.

We can only hope that it's nothing like the last time a popular game character tried to break into the edutainment scene:

]]>http://www.webpronews.com/angry-birds-is-coming-to-the-classroom-2014-05/feed/4Xbox One Launching in China in September, a Year After Lift on Console Banhttp://www.webpronews.com/xbox-one-launching-in-china-in-september-a-year-after-lift-on-console-ban-2014-04/
Wed, 30 Apr 2014 19:16:02 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=354457Fourteen years ago, China enacted a console ban as the Ministry of Culture derided both the political and violent content in many games. Sure, black market console sales skyrocketed–but it was technically illegal to sell consoles like the Xbox 360 ... Read More

]]>Fourteen years ago, China enacted a console ban as the Ministry of Culture derided both the political and violent content in many games. Sure, black market console sales skyrocketed–but it was technically illegal to sell consoles like the Xbox 360 and PS3 in China.

Last September, the country officially lifted the ban. Game consoles are now allowed to be sold in a free-trade zone in Shanghai, upon first being pre-approved by the Ministry.

And now, we know which console will be the first of its kind to enter the trade.

Microsoft has announced a deal with BesTV, a Shanghai Media Group subsidiary, to bring the Xbox One to China. The two companies' joint venture, E-Home Entertainment, was the first to be approved and registered inside the Shanghai Free Trade Zone.

“Launching Xbox One in China is a significant milestone for us and for the industry, and it’s a step forward in our vision to deliver the best games and entertainment experiences to more fans around the world,” said Yusuf Mehdi, corporate vice president, marketing and strategy, Devices and Studios, Microsoft. “BesTV has a rich history of delivering innovative entertainment content. It is the ideal partner with which to bring the Xbox business to China.”

China has a pretty solid PC (online) and mobile gaming culture, as Microsoft says that half a billion Chinese gamers are now active. Of course, Microsoft wants to tap into that in a big way by offering their new console up to what they hope will be console-hungry gamers.

“The launch of Xbox One here will bring distinction as the first-ever game console with OTT functionality in China,” said Dazhong Zhang, senior vice president, Shanghai Media Group, and chairman, E-Home Entertainment Development Company Ltd. “The launch of Xbox is a milestone for our company in the family entertainment market and will create profit growth opportunities. Furthermore, we will continue our investment and support into research and development for gaming content together with Microsoft. Via our cooperation with the world’s leading team, we will continue to develop video games fused with Chinese culture and provide further distribution support for locally produced Chinese video game content to the world.”

]]>PS4 Games: Which Ones Are You Picking Up This Week?http://www.webpronews.com/ps4-games-which-ones-are-you-picking-up-this-week-2014-04/
http://www.webpronews.com/ps4-games-which-ones-are-you-picking-up-this-week-2014-04/#commentsMon, 28 Apr 2014 01:15:16 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=353135PS4 games are not exactly a commodity at this point in time. Sony's new console is less than six months old and it still only has a handful of games. That's to be expected in a console's first year on ... Read More

]]>PS4 games are not exactly a commodity at this point in time. Sony's new console is less than six months old and it still only has a handful of games. That's to be expected in a console's first year on the market, but there's a lot of quality content hitting the PS4 this week.

The PlayStation Blog announced over the weekend that a number of PS4 games will be hitting the console this week. There's a little something for everyone ranging from JRPGs and action adventure to survival horror titles. Of course, there's also plenty of content coming for those who don't own Sony's latest console.

Before getting to that, let's check out the latest PS4 games to hit the console this week. First up, we have the much anticipated Child of Light. The JRPG from Ubisoft Montreal is an indie game from within the massive studio that brought us Assassin's Creed and Far Cry 3. Here's the official synopsis:

A jaw-dropping tribute to JRPGs. Join the brave Aurora on her quest through the mystical realm of Lemuria. Wage war in a rich, turn-based battle system with a party of quirky and charming heroes. Play alone, or with a partner.

Looks pretty good, eh? Well, it doesn't stop there as Activision will be releasing The Amazing Spider-Man 2 on PS4 next week as well. The adaptation of the upcoming summer blockbuster might just be a pretty good game if previous Spider-Man film adaptations are anything to go by. Here's the synopsis:

Unravel a threat against New York City as the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. Play as both the famed webhead and also Peter Parker, battle all-new villains, explore a fully-realized Manhattan, and unleash new abilities. Happy swinging.

Finally, there's something for the survival horror fans out there in Daylight. The procedurally generated horror title tasks players with making their way out of a creepy maze with nothing but their wits and a smartphone. The game includes unique Twitch integration that allows those watching a stream of the game to spook players through the chat. Here's the synopsis:

Endure the haunted halls and misty woods in a procedurally generated horror experience, in which no two playthroughs are the same. Unreal Engine 4 powers atmospheric settings alongside bone-chilling sounds.

If all that isn't enough to sate you, those still holding onto their PS3 will have plenty to sink their teeth into this week. The aforementioned Child of Light and The Amazing Spider-Man 3 will also be on PS3 next week. They will be joined by Bust-a-Move 4, JoJos Bizarre Adventure: All-Star Battle, Raiden IV: Overkill, Rambo: The Video Game, Scourge: Outbreak and Yu-Gi-Oh! Millennium Duels.

]]>http://www.webpronews.com/ps4-games-which-ones-are-you-picking-up-this-week-2014-04/feed/6'Titanfall' Tops March Game Sales; PS4 Outsells Xbox Onehttp://www.webpronews.com/titanfall-tops-march-game-sales-ps4-outsells-xbox-one-2014-04/
Thu, 17 Apr 2014 23:58:27 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=350096March video game sales estimates for the U.S. have been released by market research firm NPD and it appears that Microsoft's investment in the highly-marketed Titanfall has paid off - for publisher EA, that is. The March sales estimates show ... Read More

]]>March video game sales estimates for the U.S. have been released by market research firm NPD and it appears that Microsoft's investment in the highly-marketed Titanfall has paid off - for publisher EA, that is.

The March sales estimates show that Titanfall sales for Xbox One and PC combined to be the best-selling title of the crowded March release season. Sony's InFAMOUS: Second Son for the PlayStation 4 was the runner-up followed by South Park: The Stick of Truth, Call of Duty: Ghosts, and Dark Souls II. Titanfall, just one month from release, is now the second-highest selling Xbox One title since that console launched in November.

Though the relentless marketing campaign for Titanfall has made the game the top-selling title for March, the game's success may not have been the Xbox One-selling phenomenon that Microsoft had hoped. By NPD's estimates Sony still managed to sell more PlayStation 4 consoles in the U.S. than Microsoft did Xbox One consoles in March. This is despite the release of a Titanfall Xbox One bundle that essentially gave the game away with the purchase of the console and despite the fact that many U.S. retailers have been seen discounting the price of the Xbox One.

Just after the NPD numbers were released Microsoft announced that five million Xbox One consoles have been shipped to retailers since November. This puts Microsoft's console two million in sales behind Sony's PlayStation 4. Sony announced earlier today that seven million PS4s have been sold-through as of April 6.

The widening gap in sales between Sony and Microsoft's new platforms aside, hardware sales for the video game industry are looking up. Year-over-year U.S. hardware sales are up 78% according to NPD. Though software sales are down 28% from the same month last year, the quickly-growing install base of the Xbox One and PS4 puts the console market on solid ground for the years to come.

]]>Sony Has Sold 7 Million PS4s Since Launchhttp://www.webpronews.com/sony-has-sold-7-million-ps4s-since-launch-2014-04/
Thu, 17 Apr 2014 12:30:56 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=349783Sony has time and time again said that it's having trouble keeping the PS4 on store shelves. It's been that way since launch and the demand for the new console hasn't died down since. It's only been six months since ... Read More

]]>Sony has time and time again said that it's having trouble keeping the PS4 on store shelves. It's been that way since launch and the demand for the new console hasn't died down since. It's only been six months since the launch of the console and Sony has already hit another huge milestone.

"The response from the global gaming community for PS4 has been overwhelming and we are truly humbled that gamers are selecting PS4 as their next generation console of choice," said Andrew House, President and Group CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. "The PS4 journey has just begun, and although we are still facing difficulties keeping up with the strong demand worldwide, we remain steadfast in our commitment to meet the needs of our customers, and surpassing the wildest expectations of gamers by delivering new user experiences that inspire and engage. We look forward to unveiling many of these experiences to our fans in the coming months."

Speaking of experiences, Sony unveiled the features coming in system update 1.70. The focus is on sharing with the latest update as Sony introduces new software called SHAREFactory. In short, the software is a simple video editor that allows gamers to edit the video captured via the Share button. The edited video can then be exported to Facebook or an external USB device for sharing on YouTube and other video platforms. Unfortunately, there's no word on when Sony will be getting a native YouTube app on the PS4.

As for other features, update 1.70 also lets gamers turn off HDCP. HDCP was a security standard on the PS3 that prevented users from recording gameplay footage through the HDMI out. Sony never turned it off on the PS3 due to that console having a component out. With no such video out on the PS4, Sony had to offer an HDCP off option for those who want to record longer Let's Play videos of PS4 through the HDMI out.

Finally, Sony says that it's introducing a pre-loading service for those who digitally pre-order upcoming games on the PSN. After the update, users will be able to download the game before it comes out so that they can start playing the game as soon as it's released. Microsoft has already dabbled with this idea on the Xbox One with Titanfall, but it sounds like every game on the PS4 will support this feature after the update.

]]>Super Mario Bros. Theme Sounds Good On Just About Anythinghttp://www.webpronews.com/super-mario-bros-theme-sounds-good-on-just-about-anything-2014-04/
Wed, 16 Apr 2014 18:51:44 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=349338What's the most iconic video game song ever composed? If you ever played an NES, you're likely to say the music that plays in World 1-1 of Super Mario Bros. The ditty has become so synonymous with Mario that Nintendo ... Read More

]]>What's the most iconic video game song ever composed? If you ever played an NES, you're likely to say the music that plays in World 1-1 of Super Mario Bros. The ditty has become so synonymous with Mario that Nintendo continues to use the song in Mario games to this day.

While Nintendo may be remixing and reusing the song in games to this day, fans have been recreating the song on just about every instrument known to man for just as long. The most common is the piano as the song's simple melody makes it easier for beginners to easily pick up. Of course, big bands and even full orchestras have even performed the song. With almost every instrument exhausted, where does the maestro turn to when he/she wants to be original?

Wine glasses, of course!

YouTube user Dan Newbie has shared a rendition of the Super Mario Bros. theme as performed by himself on wine glasses and a frying pan. It's a little unorthodox, but the results are amazing:

Oh, and remember how I mentioned that the Super Mario Bros. theme has been performed on just about everything? I wasn't lying. Here's the theme being played on a Tesla coil:

]]>Minecraft Coming to PS4, Retail For PS3http://www.webpronews.com/minecraft-coming-to-ps4-retail-for-ps3-2014-04/
http://www.webpronews.com/minecraft-coming-to-ps4-retail-for-ps3-2014-04/#commentsWed, 16 Apr 2014 15:48:38 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=349203Ever since its release in 2009, Minecraft has grown to become one of the biggest gaming phenomenons in history. The popular multiplayer sandbox game regularly tops sales charts for every platform it appears on, including mobile devices, where Minecraft Pocket ... Read More

]]>Ever since its release in 2009, Minecraft has grown to become one of the biggest gaming phenomenons in history. The popular multiplayer sandbox game regularly tops sales charts for every platform it appears on, including mobile devices, where Minecraft Pocket Edition is a best-selling title despite it costing $7.

Most recently Minecraft came to the PlayStation 3, shooting up sales charts once again. Until now Minecraft for PS3 had been available only through Sony's PlayStation Store ad a digital download. That will all change next month.

Sony and Minecraft development studio Mojang today announced that Minecraft: PlayStation 3 Edition will be coming to retail stores in the U.S. and Europe. The game will be available on a Blu-ray disc starting May 14 in Europe and on May 16 in North America.

The retail version of Minecraft for PS3 will have all of the same features of the downloadable version, including split-screen multiplayer. The game will come with all the updates for the title up to update 14. This means that items such as potatoes, Emeralds, and more will be available right out of the box, which will look like this:

All of these features and more are previewed in a new video released by Sony today highlighting the PlaySation 3 version of Minecraft:

In addition to the PS3 retail release of Minecraft, Sony today also teased that the game is still being developed for PlayStation 4 and PS Vita. Those ports are being developed by 4J Studios, the Scottish development studio that has handled the Minecraft ports for both Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

]]>http://www.webpronews.com/minecraft-coming-to-ps4-retail-for-ps3-2014-04/feed/3'Call of Duty: Ghosts" Gets Snoop Dogg's Voicehttp://www.webpronews.com/call-of-duty-ghosts-gets-snoop-doggs-voice-2014-04/
http://www.webpronews.com/call-of-duty-ghosts-gets-snoop-doggs-voice-2014-04/#commentsTue, 15 Apr 2014 19:20:08 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=348462On the surface, the Call of Duty franchise is a very serious military shooter series that focuses on intense multiplayer competition. Fans of the series, however, will know just how silly the franchise has become in recent years. The Zombies ... Read More

]]>On the surface, the Call of Duty franchise is a very serious military shooter series that focuses on intense multiplayer competition. Fans of the series, however, will know just how silly the franchise has become in recent years. The Zombies mode in Black Ops games has become progressively sillier since its debut and even Call of Duty: Ghosts now has some rather out-of-place cameos. The first Ghosts DLC pack included a Halloween-inspired Michael Myers skin for players and the latest DLC includes a similar Predator-themed skin.

Today Activision announced that Call of Duty: Ghosts will be taking the series to a new level of silliness. The publisher has revealed that Snoop Dogg himself will be lending his voice to Ghosts.

As part of Call of Duty: Ghost's new "Voice Packs" DLC add-on content players will soon be able to put Snoop Dogg's voice into their game. The voice pack will bring Snoop Dogg's voice to narrate ongoing multiplayer action, call in killstreaks, and announce other in-game events.

The voice pack was previewed in a video released today on the Call of Duty YouTube channel. Snoop Dogg's quips include phrases such as "Squad member active, a brother from another mother," and "Don't stop, cap 'em and shank 'em."

The Snoop Dogg voice pack is part of a larger list of "Personalization Packs" add-on that will be released via Xbox Live on April 22. The add-ons will also come to PlayStation consoles and PC at a later date. The Snoop Dogg voice pack will cost $3.

In addition to Snoop Dogg's voice another add-on will be a drill instructor voice pack voiced by R. Lee Ermey.

The list of upcoming add-ons also includes the "Soap Legend Pack" (includes Captain John "Soap" MacTavish personalizations), the "Classic Ghost Pack" (includes the Ghost mask), the "Squad Pack for Extinction mode (includes heads and uniforms for characters), and six new weapon customization packs.

]]>http://www.webpronews.com/call-of-duty-ghosts-gets-snoop-doggs-voice-2014-04/feed/2Watch These Guys Beat Half-Life In Under 21 Minuteshttp://www.webpronews.com/watch-these-guys-beat-half-life-in-under-21-minutes-2014-04/
Tue, 15 Apr 2014 18:23:32 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=348435Before 1998, first-person shooters were all about, well, shooting. Half-Life came along in '98 and changed everything though. Sure, it played a lot like Quake, but it had a story. It wasn't one of those in your face stories either. ... Read More

]]>Before 1998, first-person shooters were all about, well, shooting. Half-Life came along in '98 and changed everything though. Sure, it played a lot like Quake, but it had a story. It wasn't one of those in your face stories either. It was subtle and left most of the story up to the player to find. In that sense, Half-Life is not a short game as it wants players to take it all in. If you are aiming to beat it quickly, however, it can be done rather fast.

YouTuber quadrazid and some other runners smashed the speedrun world record for Half-Life this week when he completed the game in 20 minutes and 14 seconds. Previously, speedrunners calculated that the fastest speedrun would take 27 minutes. Here's how they were able to cut almost 6 minutes off the previous time:

Starting back in the summer of 2010, the estimated time for this run was thought to be roughly 27 minutes. However, after almost four years of painstaking planning, theorycrafting and execution, we have arrived at our final time, smashing all of our wildest expectations.

Not only do we owe this new world-record time to all the new tricks we've discovered, the new routes we've found and the new ways we've learned to manipulate the game. A lot of the improvement from the first estimation and the previous world record (29 minutes, 41 seconds) comes from the very hard work and countless hours put into perfecting each and every segment, no matter how short or trivial. This run has truly been an endurance test for everyone involved, and we're extremely happy to finally be able to share it with you.

If you want to learn more about how they were able to complete Half-Life in less than 21 minutes, this Google Doc explains everything. It will tell you which runners completed which sections and how much of the game each runner completed. It's a pretty fascinating look at a communal speedrun.

]]>No Heroes Allowed: No Puzzles Either! Hits PS Vita Todayhttp://www.webpronews.com/no-heroes-allowed-no-puzzles-either-hits-ps-vita-today-2014-04/
Tue, 15 Apr 2014 17:57:37 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=348411The No Heroes Allowed franchise has been a big hit since the PSP days with its humorous take on villainy and Dungeon Keeper-esque gameplay. Now the series has returned on the PS Vita in a decidedly different format. Sony announced ... Read More

]]>The No Heroes Allowed franchise has been a big hit since the PSP days with its humorous take on villainy and Dungeon Keeper-esque gameplay. Now the series has returned on the PS Vita in a decidedly different format.

Sony announced today that No Heroes Allowed: No Puzzles Either! will be out on PS Vita today. The free-to-play game tasks players with stopping the heroes from invading Badman's stronghold through match-3 gameplay. As you might expect from a free-to-play game, it does feature the usual pay-to-win mechanics by letting players pay real money to get power boosts, increase their monster's digging power or even expand their lodgings.

The latest game in the franchise does offer some other new features beyond the new match-3 puzzle gameplay:

No Puzzles Either! offers a good mix of gameplay from the previous games in the series, with additional features including a multiplayer mode where four players can battle against heroes in AdHoc mode. Gather your friends and play powerful combos to feel the thrill of defeating strong heroes.

Also, keep an eye out for special community events. Winners of these events will be rewarded with rare, stronger monsters that can be added to their monster collections. We’re happy to announce that all of these new features are free to access, as well.

No Heroes Allowed: No Puzzles Either! should be available on the PS Vita later today when the PSN updates.

]]>New Xbox One Update Rolling Out Nowhttp://www.webpronews.com/new-xbox-one-update-out-now-2014-04/
Tue, 15 Apr 2014 15:23:41 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=348286Over the past two months Microsoft has been quickly releasing updates for the Xbox One, bringing the new console many of the features that gamers were promised when the system was revealed. The pace of the updates was somewhat quickened ... Read More

]]>Over the past two months Microsoft has been quickly releasing updates for the Xbox One, bringing the new console many of the features that gamers were promised when the system was revealed. The pace of the updates was somewhat quickened by the release of Titanfall, the multiplayer shooter that Microsoft has put quite a bit of its hopse of the Xbox One into.

The latest of these updates is now rolling out to Xbox One owners. The update brings a few essential features for specific customers, a few software upgrades for Xbox One peripherals, and even some updates that had been promised for previous software patches.

One of the biggest features coming in the latest update is the ability for the Xbox One's Blu-ray player to support 50Hz video output. This is key for a large portion of European Xbox One owners. The Xbox One's Blu-ray player app will also receive an update soon to support this feature.

Microsoft has also updated the Xbox One's system software to include a game save progress bar, surfacing the status of game saves. The system will also now show which games or apps are currently updating.

Another huge usability feature included in this update is the ability for the Xbox One console to automatically reboot after receiving a system update while in "Instant On" mode. Previously customers were forced to restart the console themselves when they turned on the console and discovered an update had been downloaded. The new feature can be enabled in the console's system settings.

In addition to these changes, Microsoft has brought several smaller software updates. The console's friends list has been updates to surface which friends are in multiplayer sessions and notifications can now pop up when friends or favorites log in to Xbox Live. Improvements to the Xbox One's new Kinect are also included in the update, which should improve the peripheral's reliability and, according to Microsoft, will reduce false positive gestures that were being read from "non-hand objects."

]]>'World of Darkness' MMO is Officially Deadhttp://www.webpronews.com/world-of-darkness-mmo-is-officially-dead-2014-04/
Mon, 14 Apr 2014 19:49:52 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=347824In 2006 White Wolf Publishing, the developer of classic role-playing games such as Vampire: The Masquerade, was acquired by CCP Games, the Icelandic video game developer best known for the popular EVE Online MMO. The transaction appeared at first to ... Read More

]]>In 2006 White Wolf Publishing, the developer of classic role-playing games such as Vampire: The Masquerade, was acquired by CCP Games, the Icelandic video game developer best known for the popular EVE OnlineMMO. The transaction appeared at first to be an odd marriage, but shortly after the sale CCP began working on an MMO based on White Wolf's World of Darkness setting.

Today some sad, but not unexpected, news has been revealed to both White Wolf and RPG fans. CCP today announced that the World of Darkness MMO project, after eight years of development, is officially dead.

The game was being developed at CCP's studio in Atlanta, Georgia. The cancellation of the World of Darkness project means that 56 employees of that Atlanta studio have now been laid off. Everyone remaining at the studio will continue working on projects related to the EVE Online series.

According to a statement released by CCP CEO Hilmar Veigar Pétursson, the studios efforts on the MMO were "falling short" of the game CCP was looking to create. He also stated that CCP hopes to make it up to World of Darkness fans in the future.

Pétursson's statement, in full:

The decision to end the World of Darkness MMO project is one of the hardest I’ve ever had to make. I have always loved and valued the idea of a sandbox experience set in that universe, and over the years I’ve watched the team passionately strive to make that possible.

I would like to give special thanks to everyone who worked so hard to make the World of Darkness MMO a reality, especially the team members affected by this decision. Their considerable contribution to CCP will not be forgotten, and we wish them well.

To our current and former employees and fans of World of Darkness, I am truly sorry that we could not deliver the experience that we aspired to make. We dreamed of a game that would transport you completely into the sweeping fantasy of World of Darkness, but had to admit that our efforts were falling regretfully short. One day I hope we will make it up to you.

Although this was a tough decision that affects our friends and family, uniting the company behind the EVE Universe will put us in a stronger position moving forward, and we are more committed than ever to solidify EVE as the biggest gaming universe in the world.

According to CCP all of its studios are now working exclusively on EVE-related projects. This is the first time since 2006 that this has been the case.

]]>Final Fantasy XIV Finally Out On PS4 Todayhttp://www.webpronews.com/final-fantasy-xiv-finally-out-on-ps4-today-2014-04/
http://www.webpronews.com/final-fantasy-xiv-finally-out-on-ps4-today-2014-04/#commentsMon, 14 Apr 2014 18:36:56 +0000http://www.webpronews.com/?p=347764After successfully rescuing Final Fantasy XIV last year and launching the long promised PS3 version, Square Enix got to work on a PS4 version of the MMO. After a lengthy beta period, PS4 players can finally lose themselves in the ... Read More

]]>After successfully rescuing Final Fantasy XIV last year and launching the long promised PS3 version, Square Enix got to work on a PS4 version of the MMO. After a lengthy beta period, PS4 players can finally lose themselves in the world of Eorzea.

Square Enix announced that Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn is now available on the PS4 - both retail and digital. The PS4 version of the MMO benefits from better visuals over the PS3 version alongside better performance. It also comes with a few features exclusive to the PS4 version of the game:

Utilize the unique features of PS4 and take your adventuring to a whole new level. Share your experience live with built-in streaming, or post a triumphant screenshot when you finally defeat the ferocious Titan. Busy day at the office with no time to play? Use Remote Play on PS Vita to continue your quest, or to finish up your crafts while at the office.

As for in-game features, it has parity with the PS3 and PC versions of the game. It also has cross platform play so you'll be able to party and adventure with your friends regardless of the platform they're playing on.

There are two things of note for new players jumping into Final Fantasy XIV today on the PS4. First, Square Enix says that only new players get the free 30 day trial for buying the game. If you are upgrading from the PS3 or moving over from the PC version, you won't get a free trial. Second, there seems to be some confusion as to which number is the activation code and which is the Square Enix members code for those who bought a retail copy. Over on the PlayStation Blog, Square Enix lays it out:

The activation code included with the game is found on the sheet labeled “Registration Code” – it is 12 digits (in a 4-4-4 format) and is a standard PlayStation Network code that you redeem on PlayStation Store.

Finally, Square Enix notes that those who bought the standard version of the game can upgrade to the digital collector's edition by simply using the Mog Station Digital Upgrade service. By upgrading, you'll get the Fat Chocobo mount, a wind-up moogle minion and more.